Point of view.

摘要

If all goes well, orthopedists will be able to treat inter-vertebral disc degeneration (IDD) with a single, intradis-cal injection of a gene therapeutic. Because genes can persist and express their products for extended periods of time, this will have a lasting and superior clinical effect-provided, that is, they can be administered safely. The paper by Levicoff et al in this issue of Spine compares the safety of 2 candidate vectors: adenovirus and adeno-associated virus (AAV).